Who is the owner of ROKETSAN: is it a state-owned company?

The majority owner of ROKETSAN is the Foundation for the Strengthening of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSKGV), which holds 55% of the capital. The rest is distributed among ASELSAN (15%), MKE (15%), VakıfBank (10%), and other shareholders (5%). Therefore, it is a company under indirect state control that is not publicly traded.

55%

TSKGV Shareholding

15%

ASELSAN Shareholding

15%

MKE Shareholding

Publicly Traded

ROKETSAN Ownership — Key Data
Full Name	ROKETSAN Rocket Industry and Trade Inc.
Majority Shareholder	TSKGV Foundation (55%)
Other Shareholders	ASELSAN 15%, MKE 15%, VakıfBank 10%, others 5%
Type of Control	Indirect state control, through a foundation
Is it publicly traded?	No — not listed on the Istanbul Stock Exchange
Headquarters	Ankara (Elmadağ; Lalahan and Kırıkkale)
General Director	Murat İkinci
Foundation Date	June 14, 1988, Ankara

Who owns ROKETSAN?

The main owner of ROKETSAN is the Turkish Armed Forces Strengthening Foundation, known by its Turkish acronym TSKGV (Türk Silahlı Kuvvetlerini Güçlendirme Vakfı), which controls 55% of its capital. This foundation is linked to the Turkish Armed Forces, so it can be said that ROKETSAN is a company under state control, albeit indirectly: the state does not directly own the shares, but they belong to a public foundation created specifically to support the military capacity of the country.

The rest of the shareholding is distributed among other major entities in the Turkish defense and financial ecosystem. ASELSAN, the largest defense electronics manufacturer in the country, holds 15%; the state-owned arms and ammunition company MKE (Makina ve Kimya Endüstrisi) holds another 15%; the state bank VakıfBank has 10%; and the remaining 5% corresponds to other shareholders. In practice, almost all of the capital is in the hands of institutions linked to the Turkish state.

The consequence of this structure is clear: ROKETSAN is not a typical private company nor is it publicly traded. Shares of ROKETSAN cannot be purchased on the Istanbul Stock Exchange (BIST) or any other market, because its capital is not open to public investors. It is a joint-stock company (A.Ş.) whose ownership is divided between a public foundation and several state entities.

ROKETSAN headquarters in Ankara, controlled by the TSKGV foundation of the Turkish Armed Forces.

Ownership Structure

The following table summarizes the distribution of ROKETSAN’s capital among its shareholders. It is important to remember that the TSKGV foundation, with 55%, holds the majority of the capital, giving it effective control of the company.

Furthermore, if the shares of TSKGV, ASELSAN, MKE, and VakıfBank — all public or state-linked entities — are added together, they account for 95% of the capital. This means that ROKETSAN is practically entirely under public control, although through different institutions and not a single ministry.

This ownership model is not coincidental. Since the 1980s, Turkey has opted to create defense companies participated by a public foundation, rather than integrating them directly into the ministerial structure. The advantage of this scheme is that it allows companies to operate with greater commercial agility — signing contracts, exporting, partnering with foreign partners — while still being under state oversight. The simultaneous presence of ASELSAN and MKE in the shareholding also reinforces coordination among the various national manufacturers, who often act as suppliers to one another in many programs.

Ownership Structure of ROKETSAN

Shareholder	Participation
Foundation for the Strengthening of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSKGV)	55%
ASELSAN	15%
MKE (Machinery and Chemical Industry)	15%
VakıfBank	10%
Other shareholders	5%

Test of a missile from ROKETSAN, a company participated by ASELSAN and MKE.

What is TSKGV, the foundation that owns ROKETSAN?

The TSKGV (Turkish Armed Forces Strengthening Foundation) is a Turkish public foundation aimed at supporting and strengthening the capacity of the national defense industry. It was conceived as an instrument to channel resources towards the creation of strategic companies capable of designing and producing their own armaments, thereby reducing dependence on foreign suppliers.

TSKGV is the main shareholder of several of Turkey’s largest defense companies. In addition to its 55% stake in ROKETSAN, the foundation holds controlling interests in other key companies in the sector, including ASELSAN (defense electronics) and other industrial firms. Thus, the foundation functions as a kind of state holding company that groups a significant part of the technological core of Turkish defense.

As a foundation and not a publicly traded company, TSKGV is not listed on the stock exchange and does not distribute its profits among private investors. The surpluses generated by the participating companies are reinvested, in principle, in strengthening the national defense industry, in line with the foundational purpose of the institution.

For a reader unfamiliar with the Turkish system, the best way to understand TSKGV is to imagine it as a stable and long-term reference shareholder, whose interest is not the immediate profit of some investors, but the consolidation of an industrial base capable of supplying the country’s Armed Forces. This logic explains why ROKETSAN has been able to invest sustainably in research and development for decades, even in long-term outcome programs, without the pressure of financial markets.

Is it a state-owned company? Can its shares be purchased?

Formally, ROKETSAN is not a public body or a ministry, but a joint-stock company (ROKETSAN Roket Sanayii ve Ticaret A.Ş.). However, since 95% of its capital is in the hands of the TSKGV foundation and other state or state-linked entities, in practice it behaves like a company under indirect state control. It is not private in the usual sense of the term, but it is also not a direct public administration.

Regarding the question that many investors ask: no, ROKETSAN shares cannot be purchased. The company is not listed on the Istanbul Stock Exchange (BIST) or any other stock market. Its capital is closed and distributed among the TSKGV foundation and the other mentioned entities, so there are no shares available to the investing public. Any offer claiming to sell shares of ROKETSAN should be taken with caution, as there is no open market for its securities.

It is important to distinguish here between ROKETSAN and some of its shareholder companies. For example, ASELSAN is listed on the Istanbul Stock Exchange, although its controlling shareholder remains the TSKGV foundation. ROKETSAN, on the other hand, remains outside the stock market. This difference is important for those seeking exposure to the Turkish defense industry through the stock market: they can do so through ASELSAN, but not directly through ROKETSAN.

As for its management, the company is led by a general manager —currently Murat İkinci— and has a workforce of around 5,000 employees, of which about 2,000 are engaged in research and development activities. Although the capital is under state control, ROKETSAN operates with industrial and commercial criteria, and obtains all of its revenue from defense sales, both to the Turkish Armed Forces and to export customers.

CLARIFICATION NOTE

Although ROKETSAN is under indirect state control through the TSKGV foundation, it is not publicly traded and its shares are not available to the investing public. The shareholding data comes from official sources; any stake described as “others” is not publicly detailed and, in that sense, has not been officially disclosed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who owns ROKETSAN?

The majority owner is the Foundation for the Strengthening of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSKGV), which holds 55% of the capital. The rest is distributed among ASELSAN (15%), MKE (15%), VakıfBank (10%), and other shareholders (5%), almost all of whom are entities linked to the Turkish state.

Is ROKETSAN a state-owned company?

It is not a direct public entity, but a joint-stock company. However, since 95% of its capital belongs to the TSKGV foundation and other state entities, it effectively operates as a company under indirect state control.

Can you buy shares of ROKETSAN? Is it publicly traded?

No. ROKETSAN is not listed on the Istanbul Stock Exchange (BIST) or any other market. Its capital is closed and distributed among the TSKGV foundation and other state entities, so there are no shares available for the investing public.

What is TSKGV?

TSKGV (Türk Silahlı Kuvvetlerini Güçlendirme Vakfı) is the Foundation for the Strengthening of the Turkish Armed Forces, a public foundation that supports the national defense industry and is a controlling shareholder of several major companies in the sector, including ROKETSAN and ASELSAN.

What stake does ASELSAN have in ROKETSAN?

ASELSAN owns 15% of ROKETSAN’s capital. MKE has another 15%, VakıfBank 10%, and the TSKGV foundation 55%. Interestingly, both ASELSAN and ROKETSAN share TSKGV as a controlling shareholder, reflecting the integration of the Turkish defense ecosystem.

Can you invest in the Turkish defense industry through the stock market?

Directly in ROKETSAN, no, because it is not publicly traded. However, one of its shareholders, ASELSAN, is listed on the Istanbul Stock Exchange, although its control remains in the hands of the TSKGV foundation.